by Tim Myers
“There’s not a thing wrong here that I can see that a little tidying up wouldn’t take care of,” Elise said, though it was clear that she was much more focused on Alex than she was exploring the room. “Come on,” she said as she tugged at his hand. “They didn’t miss anything.” Alex let himself be led out of the bathroom, but something stuck in his mind, something he’d seen, but failed to recognize the significance of.
“Hang on a second.”
“Alex, don’t put yourself through this.”
“Something doesn’t add up.”
Elise followed him back into the bathroom, and as Alex double-checked what he’d seen, Elise followed his gaze, listening as he explained what had bothered him. “That soap in the dish in the shower has been unwrapped, but the one at the sink hasn’t been touched. That doesn’t make any sense. If Tony or anyone else in here had washed his hands, he would have used the soap at the sink, but it hasn’t even been opened. Why put an opened bar in the stall if he used it to wash his hands? He wasn’t exactly over here so he could take a shower.”
Elise frowned. “You’re right, Alex. It doesn’t make sense.”
Alex reached for the soap, and as soon as he touched it, he knew that it had been run under hot water at some time recently from the tackiness of its surface. It felt oddly heavy as well, and when Alex turned it over, he saw why.
Sunk slightly into the back of the bar of soap was a gold coin, something that looked quite valuable, and ancient as well, with markings and engravings like he’d never seen before.
Alex had to wonder if that was what the killer had been looking for. One old gold coin didn’t seem to be enough of a motive for murder, but a handful of them might. “Let’s look around again, but this time, we need to be creative. Search for anything that might hide more gold coins, no matter how strange a hiding place it might seem.”
It wasn’t until Alex got to the box of tissues in the bedroom that they found anything else. The box weighed considerably more than it should have, and it was clear that Armstrong and his men hadn’t done that thorough a search of the place after all.
Alex tore open the tissue box, pulling out nearly a full batch of the white sheets until he unveiled what was hidden beneath them.
Inside, there were twenty nine coins identical to the one Alex had found in the soap.
They weren’t exactly thirty pieces of silver, but Alex had to wonder if they had led to betrayal anyway.
Chapter 7
“What should we do?” Elise asked. “Do we need to call the sheriff?”
“Not yet,” Alex answered, careful not to touch any of the coins just in case there were fingerprints on any of them. “After all, we’re already not telling him about two suspects staying here with us at the inn. If we hand all of this over to him at once, what chance is there that we solve Tony’s murder ourselves?”
“I suppose so,” Elise said. “But when he finds out, he’s not going to like it.”
“And that would be different from how he normally feels about me exactly how?” Alex asked as he got to work. Removing the shower cap from its paper sleeve, Alex carefully dumped the coins in it. The cap nearly broke under the pressure of the weight, but Alex held them carefully and tied off the opening. After he did that, he wrapped the soap, along with its coin, in a hand towel, and then carefully put it all into the clean liner of the trashcan in the bedroom.
“Aren’t we withholding evidence if we don’t tell him about what we’ve found?” Elise asked.
“I’d say that’s true, but Armstrong’s already searched this room. If there’s a way we can keep our discovery secret for a day or two, we might be able to work it to our advantage.”
“How are we going to do that?”
Alex shrugged. “I’m still thinking about that. I don’t have a plan yet, but I have high hopes. After all, I’m doubly motivated to wrap this up as quickly as I can.” He looked carefully at her. “Are you okay with that?”
“Maybe we’ll get jail cells that touch,” she said, trying to force a light grin. “At least we could hold hands then.”
“I’ll see if I can pull some strings if it comes up,” Alex replied. As he looked at what they’d found, he added, “I can’t imagine what Tony was doing with these coins.”
“Are they real gold?” Elise asked.
Alex hefted the weight again. “If they aren’t, the weight is matched pretty closely. What was Tony doing with these?”
“Any thoughts?”
“I have a hunch they were part of some kind of scam,” Alex said. “I hate to speak ill of the dead, but it’s not going to help us find Tony’s killer if we don’t accept the fact that my brother was a bit of a lowlife.”
“He fell on some hard times, that’s all,” Elise said.
Alex knew that she was just trying to help, but it wouldn’t work. He knew his brother for what the man had really become. If he accepted that, even used his knowledge of Tony to his advantage, it might just help him find his brother’s killer.
“There you are. We thought you might have bugged out on us already,” Mor said as Alex and Elise walked back into the lobby of the Dual Keepers Quarters. They’d done there best to straighten the room back up before they’d left, even taking fresh soap and tissues from the maid’s closet down the hall. When they left the scene of the crime, it was as much like it had been when they’d first searched it as they could manage. Alex had closed a paperclip in the lower part of the door so that if it were opened, he’d see it on the floor. It wouldn’t keep anyone out, but it should tell him if someone had broken in.
Alex shook his head. “No, but things have changed. We’re not going in search of our suspects.”
“Why not?” Emma asked. “I thought you wanted to solve your brother’s murder.”
“I do, but we got lucky. Our suspects found us instead.”
Mor whistled softly. “Are you telling me that they had the nerve to come back here, after what happened? They have to know that they’ll be suspects in Tony’s murder. It had to be something pretty compelling to get them here.”
Alex looked around just to be sure they were alone. He still wasn’t satisfied, though. “Let’s go into my office for a second.”
Mor and Emma looked puzzled by the request, but they followed it nonetheless.
Once the door was safely closed behind them, Alex unwrapped the bar of soap housing the first coin he’d found and handed it to Mor. “Be careful. There may be fingerprints.”
“Gotcha,” Mor said. He studied the coin, still encased in the soap, and then handed it to Emma as he said, “I’m guessing you found this in the room were Tony was murdered.”
“We did,” Elise replied.
“Is it real?” Mor asked.
Emma said, “Unless I miss my guess, it appears to be off the Santa Angela shipwreck. Most folks believe it was lost off the Florida Keys, but no one’s been able to find it.”
“Until now,” Mor said.
Alex knew that Emma was an amateur gemologist and generalized treasure hunter. Until he learned otherwise, he was going to go with her theory. “So, do you think it’s legitimate?”
“I can’t say for sure without running some tests. It would help if I could study the back of it so I could get a closer look at what’s there.”
“Hang on a second,” Alex said as he had a sudden thought. “Mor, how are you at counterfeiting?”
Mor got it instantly, a quickness that Alex cherished about his friend. “How close does it have to be to pass as legit?”
“As close as you can manage,” Alex said.
Mor thought about it, and then after a few moments, he said, “I’ll need the real coin for the casting. I think lead will do nicely, with some gold paint to make it look real. Sorry if I mess up the fingerprints on it, but there’s really no way around it.”
“You can use it,” Elise said. “It’s got to be clean.”
“I’d hope so,” Mor said.
“Of fingerprints
,” she added.
“Alex?” Mor asked.
“Go ahead.”
Mor took out his pocketknife, selected a blade, and then pried the coin of the soap. “This will do just fine,” he said as he hoisted the coin in his hand.
Emma reached out. “Let me see that.”
He did as he was told, and after a moment, Emma said, “Don’t hold me to it, but I’m guessing this is the real thing. How on earth did your brother get his hands on it?”
“I wish I could ask him,” Alex said.
“I’m sorry, Alex,” Emma said. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”
“Hang on. There’s more,” Alex said as he pulled out the shower-cap bag and dumped the rest of the coins out onto the washcloth sitting on the desk.
Mor whistled softly. “My, oh my.”
“Don’t get too excited. I have a hunch these aren’t real. Emma, what do you think?”
“Let me look,” Emma said. She glanced around Alex’s office, found a cellophane wrapped plastic cup, and removed it from its sleeve.
Putting her hand into the plastic, Emma chose a coin from the washcloth cache, held it for a moment, barely glanced at it, and then put it back in the pile, her expression ever cryptic. She chose three more coins at random, barely glancing at them as she did so, and then said, “They’re all fakes. How did you know?”
“I’m betting my brother tried double-crossing the wrong person,” Alex said. “Who knows where the real coin came from, but he must have had the counterfeits made up off them. I wonder how many copies he sold before he finally got caught?”
Elise touched his shoulder. “Alex, I’m so sorry.”
“I just wish I could say that I was surprised,” Alex said. “Mor, how long to make the dummies?”
“Alex, I don’t mind doing it, but why not just use these?”
“We might need them as evidence,” Alex said. “I’d feel better if we used coins we make ourselves for bait.”
“Understood. If I bust my hump, I can have them ready in about three hours.”
“It’s that easy?” Elise asked.
“I didn’t say that, but I’ve done it before, not with coins, mind you, but the process is the same. I’m going to do sand castings. They’re quick and dirty, and I can use my tools to polish them right up. Piece of cake.”
Alex glanced at his watch. “If you don’t mind, I’d appreciate it if you’d get right on it.”
“How about me?” Emma asked. “Do I have a task as well?”
Alex knew that Emma was a whiz at researching things on the Internet. “Dig into this coin’s history, and the shipwreck you think it came off of. Find out what the rumors are, if anyone’s claimed to have found it in the past.” He nearly didn’t add the last bit on his mind, but there was no way he could let that particular stone go unturned. “Do a search on my brother, too. See what you can turn up.”
“Even if it’s bad news?” Emma asked. It was clear the large woman was uncomfortable with the prospect of digging up even more dirt on his brother.
“Make it as thorough as you can,” Alex said. “We need to know what he’s been up to lately.”
“Got it,” Emma said.
“We meet back up here this afternoon, then,” Alex said.
“What are you two going to be doing in the meantime?” Mor asked.
“Two things,” Alex answered. “First, we’re going to see what we can uncover about our guests, and second, we need to come up with a plan on how best to use those coins you’ll be making for us.”
Alex opened the door and followed his friends outside.
“See you soon,” he said.
They waved as they got into their car and drove away. “Where should we begin?” Elise asked.
“We need to put those counterfeit coins away in our safe,” Alex said. “Real or not, they might be the evidence we need to find Tony’s killer.”
Their female guest came down the steps just after Emma and Mor left the inn. Alex approached her and said, “I’m sorry, but I don’t believe we’ve met. My name is Alex Winston.” He held out his hand, and she took it hesitantly. Alex felt a band-aid on her hand in his grip, and he wondered if that was why she hadn’t been eager to shake hands, or if it was because she’d been the one who had killed his brother. Alex watched her face, searching for some kind of reaction, but he didn’t see anything in her eyes to betray the fact that she’d known his brother. She let go of his hand and took a step back from him.
“I’m Monique Combs,” she said simply.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Alex said. “What brings you to our inn?”
Monique clearly didn’t care to answer that. “Nothing more than a whim,” she said. “If it’s all the same to you, I thought I’d take a stroll around the grounds.”
She tried to brush past them, but Alex took a step and placed himself between her and the door. “How well did you know my brother?”
“Your brother?”
Alex wasn’t buying the innocent routine. Normally he was quite careful with his guests, but this woman wasn’t here to take in the ambiance of the lighthouse or the inn. “Tony Winston. He’s the man you slapped at my rehearsal dinner two nights ago. Funny, but I didn’t remember inviting you to the event.”
“That’s because you didn’t,” Monique said a little petulantly. “Tony did.”
Whether that was true or not, there was really no way of proving it, since Alex couldn’t exactly ask his brother to confirm it.
Elise said, “You had an odd way of thanking him for the invitation. Everyone at our party saw you slap him.”
Alex added, “You looked mad enough to kill him.”
She laughed off the accusation. “Okay, if you want to talk about it, we’ll talk about it. Tony and I had a great many highs and lows in our relationship. It was nothing for us to argue one minute and fall into bed together the next.”
“You don’t seem all that torn up by his murder,” Alex said, a touch of anger leaking through into his voice.
“We all mourn in different ways, don’t we? Tony told me often about this place, growing up here with you. I won’t be in Elkton Falls ever again, so I wanted to experience a little of what he told me about firsthand.”
Alex didn’t believe her, and everything she said from that point on would be carefully tested and weighed. Tony had hated the lighthouse and the inn growing up. He hadn’t been able to wait to get away, and there was no way Alex would ever believe his brother would look back on his childhood with anything even approaching nostalgia.
“How did you two meet?” Elise asked.
“It’s really not something I care to discuss,” she said. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I really do need some air.”
Monique swept out of there, and Elise looked at Alex. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to drive her off.”
“Don’t blame yourself. She couldn’t wait to get out of here,” Alex said. “I wouldn’t believe the lighthouse was outside our door if she told me. I’d have to go out and check it myself.”
“What do you think she’s lying about, Tony, their relationship, or what?”
“Everything,” Alex said. “My brother hated it here. There’s no way he’d ever speak fondly of it. Of that I’m certain.”
“Could he have changed in the years since he was away from it?” Elise asked.
Alex loved her for the thought, and that she was always looking for the silver lining to any cloud. “No. It took everything I could do to get him here for our wedding, and if he hadn’t thought of scamming me out of money, I doubt he would have come back even for that.”
Elise took his words on faith. “Then we need to uncover her real story.”
Alex nodded. “There’s only one way to do that. It’s time to violate her privacy. You don’t have to come with me, if you’re not comfortable with that.”
“She lied to us. As far as I’m concerned, she forfeited any rights she had. Besides,” she added with a smile, “we’re innkeep
ers. It’s our duty to make sure our guests are well taken care of. I believe Monique needs more towels than I put in her room earlier.”
“Then we really should remedy that,” Alex said, matching her smile.
They started for her room upstairs, and Elise paused at the linen closet. As she grabbed more towels, she said, “Just in case she comes back.”
“I believe we’ll have a harder time explaining why it took two innkeepers to deliver them.”
Elise shrugged. “I’ll tell her you were supervising me.”
He kissed her, and then asked, “Is that what we’re calling it now?”
“Work now, play later,” Elise said.
The two of them stepped inside, and were immediately taken aback. Monique had been in the room less than two hours, but it looked as though a hurricane had hit it. Clothes were scattered everywhere, the quilt Alex’s mother had made was haphazardly thrown on the floor, and the faucet in the bathroom had been left on, leaving a stream of water running down the drain.
Alex immediately shut it off. “She’s quite the whirlwind, isn’t she?”
“More like a slob,” Elise said. “How can anyone live like this?” She started to straighten up, but Alex took her hand.
“We’re not here to clean up,” he said. “Look for clues.”
“Anything in particular?” she asked.
“Just something that doesn’t match what we know so far.”
Elise nodded, and as she began to search, Alex helped.
He found a large black handbag tucked under one pillow, and as he pulled it out, he handed it to Elise. “Look at this.”